I love collecting old things, mostly coins, and decided recently to get a metal detector - bday gift from a giftcard to amazon.com. I suppose, though, i am nervous of metal detecting in public. Not only do I notice metal detectors get eyed at, but I'm only 23 and have the mass of a toothpick. Now, normally i'm not one to care what people think of me, but I guess I'm more-or-less worried about attracting 'heat' from parents/people, and the authority, if metal detecting is even a problem.

Another downer is I don't drive. I have a slight fear of driving that's held me back from getting my license. I walk 3 miles to work, then 3 miles back home, every day I work. This makes it seem somewhat difficult to get my detector out and around, anyone have suggestions of carrying it? or should I invest in a case?

Also, anyone here Live in North Dakota (and more specifically, Minot), and/or know of any ordinances?

Being that your on foot, I would say go with a backpack as most of the detectors can be broken down to fit.
Don't worry about attracting attention from parents/people. You will find that most people you run across are pretty cool and just curious and want to talk about the metal detector, your finds, stories of people they know who had a MD and many other aspects of this enjoyable hobby.

As far as parents go, I try and stay away from any area where the kids play (tot lots) those I hit later in the evening when its empty. Parents are very protective over their young as they should be.

Your main goal is to get out and have fun finding cool stuff. Just remember whereever you go to fill your holes, take your garbage and if your unsure if you can detect the location do your research.

My father used to tell me when we would go camping. Before we leave I want you to police the campsite and pick up all the garbage you see. We need to leave this area cleaner then we found it. To this day almost everytime I dig junk those words (We need to leave this area cleaner then we found it) stick in my head.

I've been MD'n for over 30 years and I have yet to be told "you can't do that here". Of course if I don't have permission I stay off private land, and I won't hunt in a park if there are large groups of people there. It's all about common sense and consideration of others. Generally when people approach me they are curious about what I've found, or have suggestions about other places to detect.

Welcome from Illinois. Don’t worry about other people, after you start finding stuff you get use to that real quick. As others have pointed out just be considerate of others, fill in your holes and when you are approached just try being friendly. In my experience most people are a bit curious and interested in detecting. It can also be a good way to get leads on new places to detect.

Most of the time when i'm out I am so cought up detecting I really don't notice other people unless they are close. And if they are that close I just swing my way to another area. Good luck from Savannah Ga.

Welcome from Lancaster PA! Like many have said here carry it in a backpack. Work on building a good public image. Clean up trash as you go, fill in your holes nice and clean; there are several tutorials on here describing techniques for that. One thing I have found is there will always be people who stair and gawk at you while you are swining. My way to disarm the stares is to smile and give them a big warm hello. This usualy makes them say high and keep moving or they will stop and ask what im doing. They will always ask what your looking for and I tell them relics. Then they will ask have you found anything, sometimes I say "sure a few pennies" and other times Ill say " no just trash" and then pull a handfull of trash out of my pouch and show them. This will almost always get them to move on or I may even get the " Well good luck to you" comment. I don't try and act like im hiding anything, being gregarious will help to put them at ease most of the time. Good luck hunting and use this site, there are great people on here with lifetimes of knowledge.